Shiva Sutras 1.14

drishyam shariram

The five senses send electrical impulses to our brain that are transformed into what we experience as everyday reality, meaning material objects, people, etc. The five senses limit us to this ‘appearance’ of our external world and thus conceal the Real.

The yogi who has reached God-consciousness transcends five sense data and experiences the Nectar Ocean of Divine Pulsation (spanda) that pervades and permeates everything and everyone.

“This whole universe is made of that liquid of consciousness and bliss (cidananda)” [SLJ]. There is only the One. This includes the yogi and his/her own body. Therefore this entire world is perceived by the enlightened as an expansion of one's own body.

Floating in the ocean of bliss filled nectar without the appearance of distinctions, differences, and the illusion of separation – the God-Realized ones come to view their body as an object, just like every other object in the external manifested world. The enlightened no longer think, “I am this and not that.” They know they are everything. They know aham idam, “I am this whole universe” [SLJ].

Shiva Sutra 1.15

Hridaye cittasamghattad drisyasvapadarsanam

In Kashmir Shaivism, the Heart (hridaya) is not the muscle that pumps blood through the body. The Heart is an ancient symbol in India and is mentioned in the Rig Veda as that which can see what the physical eyes cannot [Ortega-Mueller].

Here the word means “the light of consciousness (cit prakasha) which is the background, the basis, of the existence of the whole universe” [SLJ]. The Heart is within us all and simultaneously is the foundation of everything. When we unite our consciousness with the Heart within, we get union with this all-pervading God-consciousness.

I like to say - We meet in the Heart. The Heart is the foundational basis light of consciousness in within each and every one of us. The Heart connects us in God-consciousness. “When you make your mind enter into the light of consciousness (cit prakasha) then your mind feels this whole universe as one with that universal being” [SLJ].

Lao Tzu expresses this beautifully in his Tao Teh Ching, verse 47:

“There is no need to run outside for better seeing, nor to peer from a window. Rather abide at the center of your being; for the more you leave it, the less you learn. Search your heart and see if he is wise who takes each turn: The way to do is to be.” [Witter Bynner]

What is this ‘within’ that can make us feel that the external hologram is permeated with God-consciousness? Swami Lakshmanjoo, in his explanations of the Bhagavad Gita verse IV.34, reveals the secret of our enlightenment. Ultimately we are the source of our Liberation.

Everything and every one is the Oneness. In our search for truth we follow many paths and learn from a variety of teachers – all are the One, the same One that we are. In the end, we have to find enlightenment for ourselves alone.

We must go within to make all these teachings into the one-pointed focus that will lead to our final Liberation. The truth is not out there, because there is no out-there out there. There is only the One, permeating and pervading the All. The ineluctable truth is everywhere for those who can ‘see’ with the Heart!

When you begin to love and want God more than anything, these divine feelings of Love of God will purify your consciousness. That purity is your sacred sword that protects your being. A pure Heart will allow the God-within you to reveal the Wisdom of Truth to you and over time you will become that Truth. No one but you can prevent you from reaching God-consciousness. You simply have to really want it.

Abhinavagupta: “When you become purified by devotion, etc., then your own sense organs…will grant you the knowledge of Reality.” You submit to the One within you. You serve the One within you as all beings. The ‘masters’ you seek out, the ones who know, are within you. In the end, you are your own Master [SLJ].

Swami Lakshmanjoo

Bhagavad Gita, In the Light of Kashmir Shaivism, Chapters 1-6, revealed by Swami Lakshmanjoo, edited by John Hughes; Universal Shaiva Fellowship, 2008.

The Triadic Heart of Shiva, Kaula Tantricism of Abhinavagupta in the Non-Dual Shaivism of Kashmir, by Paul Eduardo Muller-Ortega; State University of New York Press, Albany NY, 1989.

The Way of Life, Tao Teh Ching, According to Lao Tzu, translated by Witter Byner; A Perigee Book, 1944, 1994.

Abhinavagupta’s Commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, Gitartha-Samgraha, translated from the Sanskrit with Introduction & Notes by Boris Marjanovic; Rudra Press, 2002, 2006.